Commissioners direct county attorney to draft administrative assistant job description

Owen County commissioners voted to have the county attorney prepare a job description for an administrative assistant to support the commissioners and present it to the county council on Aug. 3.

The chair described the role as "imperative," saying commissioners need help managing email, meetings and other administrative tasks. "It's imperative that the commissioners have [an] administrative assistant," the chair said during the discussion. Sheila, identified in the meeting as the human resources administrative assistant, and the county attorney will finalize the draft.

Commissioner (speaker 2) moved that Tony prepare the job description; the motion was seconded and passed 3-0. Commissioners discussed whether the HR and administrative duties should be separate positions or combined and emphasized the need to resolve policy gaps (vacation/comp time and FMLA-related limits) before budget hearings.

Why it matters: Commissioners said workload and missed items have shown the need for dedicated administrative support and requested the county attorney and HR staff prepare necessary job materials and policy clarifications ahead of the Aug. 3 council meeting.

What happens next: County attorney will draft the job description; Sheila and HR staff will continue policy work (including comp-time and FMLA clarifications) and the item will be presented to the council on Aug. 3 for consideration.